


run and burn

by wolfstarsgalaxy



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: just a black siblings fic because i miss them, this one is pretty sad folks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:00:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27572704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wolfstarsgalaxy/pseuds/wolfstarsgalaxy
Summary: sirius runs away from home and tries to get regulus to come with him. he's unsuccessful, and only sirius gets burned off the family tree.
Relationships: Regulus Black & Sirius Black, Sirius Black & James Potter
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	run and burn

Regulus Black sat at the desk in his bedroom, trying to drown out the sounds of his mother and his brother, Sirius, shouting at each other from downstairs.

He attempted to focus his gaze on the book in front of him, but his grey eyes just skimmed across the words, not taking a single sentence in. The boy let out a sigh before closing the book and setting it down, looking out his window instead.

The sun had almost completely set in the distance, and with the commotion from the floor below him, Regulus assumed the arguing would go on into the night. The boy knew Sirius wouldn’t stop arguing until he got the last word, and as much as he loved his brother, Regulus knew that he would never win against their parents. 

The fourteen year old heard his brother’s voice grow closer, and then silence. Heavy footsteps walked down the hall, and then there was a slam of a door; Regulus could only assume Sirius had finally retreated to his bedroom across the hall from his own.

The younger debated going into his brother’s room, but figured it would be best to give him time to calm down.

—————

Sirius Black slammed his door shut, throwing himself face first onto his bed. The sixteen year old rolled over after some time and looked at a picture of him and his best friends, James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew, that was on the wall by his bed.

He stared at their faces for a while, his gaze lingering on James’s, before he got out of his bed. The boy made his way to his door, before quietly exiting his room and crossing the hall to his brother’s. 

Sirius lightly knocked on the door three times, paused, then knocked two more times, so the younger could easily tell who was on the other side of his door. 

“Come in.”

The sixteen year old quickly entered the room and shut the door behind him. He was met with the sight of his brother at his desk, a closed book sitting on top of it. Regulus had turned in his chair so he faced the older. 

Sirius sighed. “I’m sure you heard all the yelling?”

“Of course.”

“Well, I’ve decided I’ve had enough of that,” he paused for a second before continuing. “Enough of  _ all _ of this.”

Sirius made his way across the room, kneeling in front of Regulus and taking his hands in his own. “Leave with me.”

“I- What?” Regulus raised an eyebrow. “Is this your way of saying you want me to hang out with you and James?”

“ _ No _ ,” Sirius groaned. “Well, technically yes, in a way, but I’m leaving, Reg. As in I’m not coming back. I’m running away. I can’t take this shit anymore, and I know it’s not the best for you, either.”

“Sirius…” the younger let his voice drift off. 

“I’m gonna go to the Potters’ for a while; James always told me that if we need  _ anything _ , we can always go to his family. I’m gonna stay there until I can get a place of my own, and I want you to come with, Reg.”

The fourteen year old pulled his hands away from his brother’s and looked toward the door. “Siri, we can’t leave. Mother and Father would never let us.”

“And I know that. Listen, Reggie,” the older of the two gently cupped the younger’s face with one hand, moving his head so their eyes met, and he grabbed Regulus’s hands with his other once more, “everyone knows how I get treated by our parents. No matter how many times you tell me everything’s okay with you and them, I know it’s not.”

“Sirius,” Regulus started, “they’ve done nothing wrong to me. They’re-”

“That’s what they want you to think, Reg. They want you to think that everything they do is good and all of that,” Sirius lightly squeezed Regulus’s hands. “I don’t want to leave you here. I want you to come with me. Away from all of this.”

“I just don’t think it’s a good idea, Siri. Who knows what could happen to us? I mean-”

“Reg,” the boy spoke sternly, “the most that will happen to us is getting burned off the family tree like Andromeda was a few years back. I promise you things will be okay if we leave. They’ll be better, even. Please trust me, Reg. I don’t want to leave you.” 

Regulus looked down at their hands before letting out a shaky whisper. “I can’t, Sirius. I can’t leave here.”

“Are you scared?” In any other situation, Sirius always said those words in a teasing sense, but with one look at his face, Regulus knew that Sirius was genuinely concerned. 

The younger boy drew in a deep breath, his jaw starting to tremble. 

“It’s okay to be scared, Regulus. It’s not a bad thing to be scared,” Sirius moved his hand that was still cupping his brother’s face, and brought it down to hold Regulus’s hands with his other. “And you know what? I’ll be right here with you this whole time. I’m not going to leave you. I never want to. I know this seems a bit odd, but do you remember what I told you when I got my Hogwarts letter?”

The boy thought for a second, before shaking his head.

“I told you that I would always be with you. I might not always be right at your side,” Sirius placed a hand on Regulus’s chest, over the boy’s heart, “but I’m always right here, okay?”

Regulus placed a hand over his brother’s. “I know, Siri. I’m just..” he hesitantly looked toward the door before he spoke again, voice quiet and shaky. “I can’t leave.  _ You  _ can, but it wouldn’t be good for me to leave.”

“You aren’t going to let me persuade you to come with me, huh?” 

Regulus shook his head in response. 

Sirius let out a small sigh. “As much as I don’t want to leave you here, I understand. Do you want me to stay here with you instead?”

“No,” he replied. “I don’t want you to stay here if you don’t want to. I’ll be fine on my own.”

“Are you sure, Reg?”

“Positive.”

“Alright, then,” Sirius squeezed his brother’s hand one last time before standing up. “I’m going to leave later tonight. I’ll come in here to say goodbye before I go.”

Regulus nodded. “You should probably go now and pack your stuff.”

“Probably,” the older smiled. “I’ll see you in a few hours, Reg.”

Sirius turned on his heel to head back across the hall, before feeling Regulus’s cold hand grab his gently. He turned back around and faced him, raising an eyebrow.

“Here,” Regulus held out a book to Sirius, “take this with you when you leave. It’s a muggle book Remus gave me, and I figured it’d be best for you to give it back to him.”

“Oh,” the older took the book and examined it, noticing a small piece of parchment sticking up about halfway through the book. “Did you finish it?”

The fourteen year old hesitated before answering. “Yeah. Yeah, I did finish it. It was good. Send Remus my thanks for letting me read it.”

“Can’t you do that yourself? You hang out with us, James, and Peter at school, like, all the time.”

“I know, but…” Regulus looked down at the floor. “Just take it, Sirius.”

“Alright. For real this time, I’m gonna head back to my room,” Sirius lifted Regulus’s head and gave him a small smile, before reaching up and ruffling his hair. “I’ll be back.” 

And with that, Sirius quietly left his brother’s room and made his way across the hall to his own, almost immediately packing his things. 

—————

Sirius looked around his childhood bedroom for what he hoped to be the last time. He sighed at all of his Gryffindor posters and his favorite picture of himself, James, Remus, and Peter, which were all stuck to the dark walls with a permanent sticking charm.

While Number 12 Grimmauld Place was a nightmare, Sirius’s bedroom had become a sort of safe haven to him during the time he had to spend there. The boy found it hard to believe that he would be leaving all of this behind within a night, not to mention leaving all the memories he made with his brother behind as well. 

Grabbing his school trunk, which held so many belongings that it was much heavier than it usually was, Sirius let out a deep breath before opening his door, sneaking into the hallway quietly. The boy guessed it was around three in the morning, so he noted that he had to be extra careful to not wake anyone up if he wanted to successfully leave. 

He quietly closed the door and crept across the hallway to his brother’s room. Knowing that Regulus was most likely asleep, Sirius didn’t do their signature knock, and instead just sneaked into the room, making the least amount of noise that he could. 

The fourteen year old boy was laying on his bed, asleep. A few dark curls had fallen on his pale face, and Sirius smiled, happy to see his brother completely at peace and not worrying or overworking himself. 

Sirius gently set his trunk down by the door. He walked over to Regulus’s bed, kneeling by it and running his fingers through his brother’s hair. The boy stirred slightly at this, but did not wake up. 

The older withdrew his hand and stood, walking over to his brother’s desk. He saw several scrap pieces of parchment, and decided to pick up Regulus’s quill and write a small letter, just so he wouldn’t be leaving him without a goodbye. 

Once he finished with the letter, Sirius folded it, writing his brother’s name on the outside, and going back over to the sleeping boy. 

He slipped the parchment under Regulus’s pillow, one of the many spots both boys used to hide stuff from their family. Sirius left a tiny bit of the letter peeking out from beneath the pillow, hoping Regulus notices it when he wakes up. 

The older boy kneeled by the bed once again. He pushed the hair resting on Regulus’s forehead back, pressing a small kiss to the pale skin. 

“I love you so much, Reg,” he whispered, bringing his hand down to cup the boy’s face. The younger slightly leaned into the touch, and Sirius pulled his hand away, a sad smile on his face. “I’m so sorry for leaving you.”

Sirius stood and walked toward the door, grabbing his stuff. With one hand on the door handle, he turned back to look at Regulus one last time. 

The older left the room, letting out a shaky sigh once he had closed the door behind him. Sirius quietly walked through the dark building he used to call a home years upon years ago. 

Sirius was able to make it out without waking anyone, something the boy was very grateful for. He walked down the front steps and down the street, relieved to be leaving Number 12 Grimmauld Place for the rest of his life. 

—————

Despite all of the crazy things he’s encountered in his life, Fleamont Potter never would’ve expected a knock at his front door at four in the morning and opening it to the sight of one of his son’s best friends, drenched in water and carrying a heavy trunk used for school.

When leaving Grimmauld Place, Sirius was able to get a ride on the Knight bus. Unfortunately for the sixteen year old, though, it started pouring rain outside, which showed no signs of stopping any time soon, hence the position he was in right now: dripping wet on the Potters’ front porch, a nervous smile on his face. 

Without asking any questions, Mr. Potter ushered the boy into the house, casting drying charms on Sirius and his belongings. 

“Monty?” a female’s voice, which Sirius immediately recognized as Euphemia Potter, rang out. “Who was at the door?”

The woman stopped walking at the sight of the boy, before rushing over and engulfing him in a hug, pressing a kiss to his head. 

Euphemia pulled back, cupping the boy’s face with her hands. “Sirius, darling, what are you doing here at this time? Did something happen to you?”

“Well. sort of?” it came out as more of a question than as an answer. “I ran away. I couldn’t stay at that place anymore.”

Euphemia drew in a breath, and Fleamont placed one hand on his wife’s shoulder and the other on Sirius’s shoulder. “You two go sit down. I’ll go wake James up.”

Mrs. Potter was about to speak up before her husband interrupted her. 

“Love, I know it’s four in the morning, but I  _ know _ that James would want to be informed about Sirius’s arrival right away.”

She sighed and nodded before guiding Sirius to the main room, sitting him down and starting a fire in the fireplace. Euphemia kneeled in front of the boy sitting in the armchair.

“I’m sorry if I’ve caused you any trouble,” the boy mumbled, looking at his feet.

“Honey, don’t apologize. This is no trouble at all. We’ll always be here whenever you need us. Now,” the woman reached out and grabbed one of Sirius’s hands with her own, rubbing her thumb across the slightly cold skin, “what happened? I know you said you ran away, but what have they  _ done _ to you?”

“They’ve done nothing-”

“Don’t you dare say they haven’t done anything. I know damn well how they treat you.”

Sirius sighed. “Could I talk about it in the morning?”

“Of course, of course,” Euphemia brought her other hand up to cup the boy’s cheek. “Once Fleamont and James come down, we’ll get you to bed, alright?”

All Sirius could do was nod.

“Pads?” a tired voice rang from the room’s entry.

The long haired boy stood when Euphemia moved out of the way, and ran right to his best friend, immediately pulling him into a tight hug.

James wrapped his arms around Sirius, holding him even tighter. He pulled back, pressing a kiss to the older’s forehead, resting his hands on his shoulders. “Dad’s making sure your room is all neat. Do you want to sleep in there tonight? Or would you like to sleep in my room?”

“Your room,” Sirius muttered. “I don’t want to be alone.”

The other boy smiled softly, before turning to his mother. “We’ll see you later, mum. Gonna get some more sleep.”

The woman walked over and pulled both boys into her arms, pressing a kiss to each of their heads. “I trust you can make it up by yourselves?”

The boys nodded.

Euphemia smiled. “Alright. Goodnight, darlings. I love you both so much.”

She left the room, and James grabbed Sirius’s hand with his own. “Let’s go to bed.”

The long haired boy smiled, and the two walked to James’s room, Sirius leaning his head on the boy’s shoulder. The dark skinned boy responded by putting his head on top of Sirius’s and giving the other boy’s hand a light squeeze.

————— 

Sirius sat on James’s bed, waiting for the other boy to come back with two glasses of water. The long haired boy changed into comfier clothes while he waited.

James came in shortly after, sitting next to his best friend, both of them drinking out of the glasses. 

The darker boy stood, placing his now empty glass on the nightstand. Sirius handed him his own to put there as well. Once he was done, James turned to the other boy, who now had his arms outstretched.

“Hug?”

All Sirius could do was look at James and nod, tears welling up in his grey eyes.

James walked over to him, standing in front of Sirius and pulling him close to his chest. Sirius buried his face into the boy’s shirt, body shaking.

They stayed like this for a while, before James drew back, put his glasses on the nightstand, and crawled into bed, slipping under the covers and holding his arms out to the other.

Without hesitation, Sirius practically leapt on top of James, arms around the boy’s neck, face buried in his shirt once more. James had one hand running through Sirius’s dark curls, the other rubbing circles into his back. 

“I’m scared for Regulus,” Sirius whispered, lifting his head up. “I tried to get him to come with but he didn’t want to.”

“Why didn’t he want to?” questioned James, wanting to get Sirius to talk while it was just the two of them. 

“He didn’t want Mother or Father forcing us back there. He was scared they would do that, and I’m thinking he might’ve been right to stay. I’m going to be taken back there, I know it.”

“Hey, listen to me,” James pushed Sirius away from him enough so he could see the boy’s tear stained face. “We’re not going to let them take you.  _ I’m _ not going to let them take you, okay?”

He pulled Sirius closer to him. “I promise you, Sirius. You’re safe here.”

Sirius sobbed, holding James tighter. James held him just as tight.

“I’m here. It’s okay, Padfoot. You’re home. I’ve got you.”

“I l-love you, Prongs,” Sirius’s voice was muffled.

“I love you more,” he gave Sirius a kiss on the head. “Get some sleep. You deserve it, love.”

James stayed awake until he could hear Sirius’s breaths even out. Once the boy was sure he was asleep, he too fell into unconsciousness, still holding his best friend close to him. 

**Author's Note:**

> hihi i just want to quickly add that james calling sirius "love" at the end is in no way romantic!! i definitely see james as one of those people who calls their friends pet names like that, so :))


End file.
